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Elon Musk is pushing back on his reputation as a micromanager. The best employees, he says, actually need little management.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wouldn\u2019t call it micro management, it\u2019s just insisting on attention to detail,\u201d he said in an interview Monday with Nicolai Tangen, the chief executive of Norway\u2019s wealth fund, which was streamed\u00a0on Musk\u2019s social media site, X. \u201cIf you\u2019re trying to make a perfect product, then attention to detail is essential.\u201d<\/p>\n
Walter Isaacson\u2019s biography on Musk depicted\u00a0the billionaire obsessing\u00a0over the most minute of decisions, from the design of the Cybertruck to where Twitter<\/a> put its\u00a0servers. Musk said on Monday that he hasn\u2019t read Isaacson\u2019s book about him, despite giving the author a front-row seat to how he simultaneously ran six companies over two years.<\/p>\n While most micro-managing bosses don\u2019t consider their actions to be encroaching on employee autonomy, the majority of workers say they have had an overly involved boss during their careers,\u00a0surveys<\/a>\u00a0have found.\u00a0And Musk is in good company with other demanding bosses like former Apple<\/a> CEO\u00a0Steve Jobs and former Microsoft<\/a> CEO\u00a0Bill Gates.<\/p>\n When asked about how to manage his best employees, Musk said: \u201cSmart people, they manage themselves.\u201d Intelligent and talented people can go and work anywhere,\u00a0 he said, so the way to keep them them happy is to set out goals and let people figure out how to\u00a0achieve them.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I say, \u2018Look, this is the goal we\u2019re after and this is what we\u2019re trying to achieve. If you agree with that goal, then let\u2019s try to get it done,\u2019\u201d\u00a0Musk said, noting that he reserves the right to weigh in and take control when warranted. \u201cOnce in a while, you have to say, \u2018Guys, you have to trust me on this one.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\nSubscribe to CHRO Daily, our newsletter focusing on helping HR executive navigate the changing needs of the workplace. Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n